Bumblebee 5, the 'Betsy Island Express' after record run.

by Peter Campbell on 8 Jan 2002 The 'Betsy Island Express' is the new name skipper Roger Hickman and sailing master David Sampson have given Bumblebee 5 after her runaway surfing victory today in the 30 nautical mile medium distance event of Sailing South Race Week 2002.

Bumblebee 5, the Overall IMS winner of the recent Sydney Hobart Race, averaged more than 10 knots to take line honours after race leader Line 7 Lenna of Hobart was forced to retire shortly after rounding Betsy Island with a broken forestay.

The Sydney 62 custom owned by Sydney yachtsman John Kahlbetzer, also won the IMS division on corrected time to take the overall lead in the six race Race Week that ends tomorrow with two short races on Hobart's river estuary.

Galeforce winds of 30 to 40 knots made it a hard race, but crew of most boats were delighted with the winds in contrast to the Bruny Island Race drifter on Sunday. Bumblebee 5 sailed the course in 2 hours 58 minutes 45 seconds, believed to be a race record.

'It was a great sail, a sensational sail,' was how a delighted former Royal Yacht Club of Tasmania Dr Des Cooper described the raceafter sailing aboard David Gough's cruiser/racer, Eclipse, including steering the Buizen 48 up the river under spinnaker.

On corrected time, Bumblebee 5 won from two Hobart yachts, Doctor Who (Roger Jackman) and Invincible (Harold Clark).

'We were hitting 16 to 17 knots of boatspeed running back up the river under a 1.3 ounce spinnaker - a kite designed for fresh to frightening running; but in the flat water of the river there it was never frightening,' said skipper Hickman, who won the 2000 Sydney Hobart Race with SAP Ausmaid.

'It was a great race with local navigation expert David Goodfellow taking us through the gap between Little Betsy and Big Betsy Islands, in hot pursuit of Line 7.

'We were sorry to see her break her forestay and drop out of the race and even moreso to learn that she is out of the series.'

After learning that Bumblebee 5 had also won the line and handicap double, Hickman said he would dedicate the victory to his late father, Jim Hickman, who died last year. 'Jim sailed in many Betsy Island Races and would have loved this one,' Roger said.

The Sydney yacht Line 7 Lenna of Hobart, a former Volvo 60, had led from the fleet from start, utilising her water ballast to power-sail down the Derwent River, out into Storm Bay and around Betsy Island as the south-westerly winds swept through at 30-40 knots.

Then disaster struck, her forestay breaking at the top as she sailed back towards the Iron Pot at the entrance to the river, her headsail falling over the side and her mast gyrating wildly without this vital part of its rigging.

Quick action by the crew, led by Tasmania's international yachtsman Graham 'Frizzle' Freeman, in dropping the mainsail and using halyards lashed to the bow saved the mast from breaking.

'We were lucky not to lose the rig, but is a great a disappointment not only to be forced out of this race when we were leading so well, but now we are out of this great Sailing South Race Week, owner/skipper Ian Treleaven said after motoring back the RYCT.

'The wind today was just what we had wanted to get this boat really going; we were hitting 17 knots boatspeed around Betsy Island as we surfed on several big waves.'

Bumblebee 5's win, her third out of four races, has given her top place in the IMS pointscore with 462 points, ahead of Invincible on 459.9 points and T42 Solandra (Craig Escott) on 451.8 points.

Line 7 was not the only casualty in the strong winds and steep seas near the Iron Pot entrance to the Derwent River.

The Sports Boat, Resin Dog, a Mongral 7500 Sports, skippered by Sam Edmunds from the Port Dalrymple Yacht Club, was dismasted off South Arm Beach, but returned with assistance to the RYCT under its outboard motor.

Other retirements included Madman's Woodyard (Adrian Paterson) from the PHS division and the Sports Boats, Tuesday's Child (Steve Walker), Wild Guess (Michael Hutchinson), Watermark (Andrew Burdon) and Rager (David MacFarlane).

The IRC Division saw a win for another local boat, Breakaway, skippered by Wayne Banks Smith, with the Sydney 38, skippered by David Kellett, second and Hobart's Valheru (Tony Lyall) taking third place. Next leads the pointscore with 461.6 points, fractionally ahead of Breakaway on 461.5 points and the US maxi, Icon, on 457.2 points. Icon finished second across the line today but well astern of Bumblebee 5 after ripping her mainsail.

In the PHS Division, first place on corrected time in the Betsy Island Race went to Redback (David O'Neill) from Quetzalcoatl (Josh Ey) which recovered well from having to return and restart after breaking the line ahead of the starting gun. Third place went to Colin Denny's consistent Farr Horizons.

In the Overall pointscore for the large PHS division, wellknown Hobart yachtsman and Ports Authority chief executive Dick Knoop leads the pointscore with 452.8 points after placing sixth in the Betsy Island Race with his timber cutter, Magellan.

Farr Horizons is a close second on 447.9 points with Quetzalcoatl third on 440.6 points.